Bill Clinton and Jerry Brown Make Nice

Clinton endorses Brown for governor

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Former President Bill Clinton appears at a rally in support of first-term Democratic Rep. Mike McMahon, Friday, Sept. 3, 2010 in Staten Island, N.Y.. McMahon is among a handful of House Democrats in New York believed to be vulnerable in November. Clinton says Republicans left the national economy a "mess" and will make matters worse if they reclaim control of Congress.

Updated at 10:26 AM PDT on Thursday, Oct 28, 2010

After some intriguing backbiting in recent days, former President Bill Clinton and current candidate for governor, Jerry Brown, have kissed and made up, politically speaking.

The make-up session came in the form of an official endorsement. Clinton issued a statement Tuesday saying the Democratic attorney general would be "an excellent governor."

The specific endorsement from Clinton:

"I strongly support Jerry Brown for governor because I believe he was a fine mayor of Oakland, he's been a very good attorney general, and he would be an excellent governor at a time when California needs his creativity and fiscal prudence…Moreover, the tough campaign we fought 18 years ago is not relevant to the choice facing Californians today. Jerry and I put that behind us a long time ago."

Brown's response:

"I am deeply honored to have been endorsed by former President Bill Clinton, who, after his accomplishment-rich presidency, continues to demonstrate his commitment to bettering our state, our nation, and our world, each and every day."

The endorsement comes one day after Brown called Clinton to apologize for a jab he made this weekend in Los Angeles. Brown questioned Clinton's honesty and used Clinton's relationship with Monica Lewinsky to do it.

"I did not have taxes with this state," Brown jokingly told a crowd Sunday night.

The relationship between Brown and Clinton has been testy at best ever since the 1992 presidential campaign, but it got a little testier after a new attack ad featuring Clinton hit the California airwaves.

Last week, Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman used a video clip from that campaign in a 30-second spot. The clip shows Clinton criticizing Brown during a presidential debate.

"He raised taxes as governor of California," Clinton says in the ad. "He had a surplus when he took office and a deficit when he left."

We'll see if the endorsement ends a storyline that has been fodder for political types for more than a week.

Here's the Whitman ad if you missed it.

And here is the Time Magazine posting of Brown taking the Lewinsky jab.